Perception Tests: Can I Count?

I give more experienced guys a hard time for being unaware while dancing. We all miss so much at different points, and we are not alone; our partners miss things too. The reality is we are juggling quite a bit while social dancing and it's easy to miss some details.

Beginning/intermediate leads deserve lots of slack, as it's easy to be overwhelmed with details. We are all blind to some things, but over time our awareness should be expanding from a dance perspective.

I found this fascinating perception test, and it provides some interesting insights. The person running the seminar in the clip lays out the ground rules for the test: "Count the number of passes made by the people in white shirts, while they move the basketball around." (This will make sense when you see the clip below.)

Watch the clip BEFORE reading further!
It's around two and a-half minutes.

You watched it, right? (OK... I'm assuming you're an adult and took the time.)

Researchers call the concepts in the clip by several names, including "perception blindness," "change blindness" and "inattention blindness." They all simply mean: When we focus on one area, we often become blind in other areas.

You see this all the time on the dance floor with beginners; most are naturally unaware of a large set of dancing issues. Guys may be so focused on their footwork and patterns they barely see their partners for complete dances. Ladies may hit someone in the head with some over zealous arm styling they recently learned in a class.

When we’re focused in one area, the rest of the details slip away. It's normal, and even when we know we are being tested--as in the clip above--we can miss things that seem like no-brainers when we look back.

Over time if the blindness persists, it grows to be a bigger problem, as people hold more experienced dancers to a different standard. After dancing a few years, I have no excuse for not paying attention to a much wider set of issues compared to the new guy.

The next time you see a dancer struggling and you know they're a beginner, find a way to encourage them to stay in the game. While they are focused on the fundamentals, it's very difficult to see a wide set of issues obvious to the more experienced dancers.

I didn't see the obvious in the video above the first time. I actually replayed the entire clip to be sure it really was there the first time just to verify my blindness.

I think it's a great thing to keep in mind at the clubs, where there is a huge difference between someone figuring it out during the early stages, and the ones who are unaware but have danced for a year or more.

The new dancers deserve our respect and encouragement. The guys who are clueless after being around a while need some subtle hints to take some lessons.

The question we all need to ask ourselves is, "Where am I blind, and who can I ask that I trust will be straight with me?"

If you're a beginner, don't worry about it now, since everybody has a hundred blind spots at the start. You have to walk before you can run and even if someone points out twenty things you could improve, most people need to start with simple things and build over time.

If you've been dancing a while, it's a more complex question that often requires an outside reference point.

Let me know what you're doing to eliminate your blind spots. Click on the comment link below and let me know what you saw in the clip (the first time) along with your thoughts.

A couple related articles:
Unaware Club for Men
How Long Before I Get Good